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July 14th Poll results! Interesting results; please discuss!!!

Took an extra day to sort all of these poll results.
That's because the results are quite interesting!
Let's look at it poll by poll.

First up, we need to know what percentage of customers the votes represent.
Based on information posted, gathered and guestimated, here are the production numbers on the MOTUC line that have been predicted by us and fans on He-Man.org.
These are not to be relied on as accurate! It's only here as some form of reference point.

King Grayskull - 5000
He-Man - 10,000
Beast Man - 7,500
Skeletor - 10,000
Stratos - 7,500
Faker - 7,500 (we estimate 5000 were taking to NYCC to match what was taken to SDCC for King Grayskull)
Mer-Man - 15,000 (this is where Mattel said they had doubled numbers)
Zodac - 15,000
Hordak - 15,000 (Mattel stated that the numbers of Hordak were not hirer than previous figures)

The votes in the poll ranged between approximately 1800 votes to 2300 votes depending on the poll.
If everyone who voted is buying MOTUC figures, the representation of the amount consumed from the totals above depends on how many figures each fan ordered.
If everyone ordered just 1 figure, the average representation in our polls is about 14%
If everyone averaged 3 figures ordered, the average representation in our polls is about 42%
So the polls could potentially represent a respectable percentage of the consumer audience for MOTUC.

Extra heads clearly win out. But a respectable number of voters still preferred mini-comics.
While only a few people at the SDCC convention raised their hands for a vote on mini-comics, the story is quite different when put to a worldwide vote.

Poll #2 - What figure order limits should Mattel put in place?
Now that the line has been active for almost a year, where do fans feel the limit on orders should be?
*** 2097 fans voted in this poll ***
Reduce it to 3 per person for fans across the globe - 643 (30.66%)
Reduce it to 5 per person for fans across the globe - 561 (26.75%)
Leave it at 10 per person for fans across the globe - 351 (16.74%)
Find a way to leave it at 10 per person for international fans so they can gang-order and save on shipping, and reduce it to 3 per person for US fans - 310 (14.78%)
Find a way to leave it at 10 per person for international fans so they can gang-order and save on shipping, and reduce it to 5 per person for US fans - 232 (11.06%)

Results heavily vary in this poll.
One should note that 57.41% voted for the limit to be 5 or less. So an adjustment to 5 would be closer to representing a majority vote.
One should also note that 25.84% voted to find a way to increase the limit for international fans to allow them to save on shipping, but decrease for US based fan orders.

Poll #3 - Which brands are most important to you?
Fans all have their favorite MOTU lines. And some like them all. This gives us an idea of where popularity falls for the brands. This was also a ranking poll. So you could vote for all the brands you like.
*** 2186 fans voted in this poll ***
Original MOTU - 2,072 (94.78%)
Relaunched 2002 - 1,515 (69.30%)
She-Ra: POP - 1,413 (64.64%)
New Adventures of He-Man - 857 (39.20%)

It's safe to say from this poll that a big chunk of all fans who voted want to see ALL brands represented.
Original MOTU is the heavy winner by far. Very few fans do not want to see this brand represented. And since the MOTUC line is based most heavily in the original MOTU look, it looks like the line is to a good start.
But 2002 and She-Ra also came in heavy.
The sculpting style and reuse of parts in MOTUC makes the necessity of individual toolings for figures to achieve a 2002 next to impossible, as already indicated by Mattel. But love for the 2002 line remains heavy.

Poll #4 - What changes should be made if Mattel re-releases He-Man?
Mattel will be releasing He-Man and other figures who have previously sold out. We listed the most popular things people would want to see changed for a re-release of He-Man. This was also a ranking poll. So you could vote for all the elements you would want to see changed.
*** 1884 fans voted in this poll ***
modified packaging to indicate it is a new release - 982 (52.12%)
altering He-Man's wrist articulation so he can hold his sword perpendicular to the ground like in his famous transformation sequence - 812 (43.10%)
reducing red around the eyes - 781 (41.45%)
increasing the flexibility of the plastic in the furry shorts to allow for more posing and seating options - 693 (36.78%)
fix orientation of shoulders so they are not backwards - 671 (35.62%)
find a way to have tighter joints - 641 (34.02%)
no action-posing in the packaging to help prevent breaking - 598 (31.74%)
reducing glossy finish - 569 (30.20%)
reducing the size of He-Man's crotch piece between the ball-joints to match the size of Beast Man's in order to help prevent a bow-legged stance - 556 (29.51%)
lower his eyebrows to be closer to how Faker's were painted - 341 (18.10%)
don't change a thing - 335 (17.78%)

The rankings speak for themselves.
2nd edition packaging is the top preference.
Each option decrease slowly in popularity, so there's no clear divide on where interest drops dramatically on any one item.

Extra heads clearly win out. But a respectable number of voters still preferred mini-comics.
While only a few people at the SDCC convention raised their hands for a vote on mini-comics, the story is quite different when put to a worldwide vote.

I hope this helps toward getting an extra head pack as a bonus item. Some releases could definitely use them.

Poll #3 - Which brands are most important to you?
Fans all have their favorite MOTU lines. And some like them all. This gives us an idea of where popularity falls for the brands. This was also a ranking poll. So you could vote for all the brands you like.
*** 2186 fans voted in this poll ***
Original MOTU - 2,072 (94.78%)
Relaunched 2002 - 1,515 (69.30%)
She-Ra: POP - 1,413 (64.64%)
New Adventures of He-Man - 857 (39.20%)

It's safe to say from this poll that a big chunk of all fans who voted want to see ALL brands represented.
Original MOTU is the heavy winner by far. Very few fans do not want to see this brand represented. And since the MOTUC line is based most heavily in the original MOTU look, it looks like the line is to a good start.
But 2002 and She-Ra also came in heavy.
The sculpting style and reuse of parts in MOTUC makes the necessity of individual toolings for figures to achieve a 2002 next to impossible, as already indicated by Mattel. But love for the 2002 line remains heavy.

YAAAAAAA!!!! 200X did so well! That's a pleasant surprise. I can't believe how close 200X and POP are...

Poll #4 - What changes should be made if Mattel re-releases He-Man?
Mattel will be releasing He-Man and other figures who have previously sold out. We listed the most popular things people would want to see changed for a re-release of He-Man. This was also a ranking poll. So you could vote for all the elements you would want to see changed.
*** 1884 fans voted in this poll ***
modified packaging to indicate it is a new release - 982 (52.12%)
altering He-Man's wrist articulation so he can hold his sword perpendicular to the ground like in his famous transformation sequence - 812 (43.10%)
reducing red around the eyes - 781 (41.45%)
increasing the flexibility of the plastic in the furry shorts to allow for more posing and seating options - 693 (36.78%)
fix orientation of shoulders so they are not backwards - 671 (35.62%)
find a way to have tighter joints - 641 (34.02%)
no action-posing in the packaging to help prevent breaking - 598 (31.74%)
reducing glossy finish - 569 (30.20%)
reducing the size of He-Man's crotch piece between the ball-joints to match the size of Beast Man's in order to help prevent a bow-legged stance - 556 (29.51%)
lower his eyebrows to be closer to how Faker's were painted - 341 (18.10%)
don't change a thing - 335 (17.78%)

The rankings speak for themselves.
2nd edition packaging is the top preference.
Each option decrease slowly in popularity, so there's no clear divide on where interest drops dramatically on any one item.

I could care less about new packaging, so long as MOTUC He-Man's mistakes are all fixed.

Poll #3 - Which brands are most important to you?
Fans all have their favorite MOTU lines. And some like them all. This gives us an idea of where popularity falls for the brands. This was also a ranking poll. So you could vote for all the brands you like.
*** 2186 fans voted in this poll ***
Original MOTU - 2,072 (94.78%)
Relaunched 2002 - 1,515 (69.30%)
She-Ra: POP - 1,413 (64.64%)
New Adventures of He-Man - 857 (39.20%)

It's safe to say from this poll that a big chunk of all fans who voted want to see ALL brands represented.
Original MOTU is the heavy winner by far. Very few fans do not want to see this brand represented. And since the MOTUC line is based most heavily in the original MOTU look, it looks like the line is to a good start.
But 2002 and She-Ra also came in heavy.
The sculpting style and reuse of parts in MOTUC makes the necessity of individual toolings for figures to achieve a 2002 next to impossible, as already indicated by Mattel. But love for the 2002 line remains heavy.

So it looks like fans want Classic She-Ra characters made with 200x additional flare

The 3rd poll seems to speak pretty well for POP characters. I think it's an excellent result, considering that She-Ra hasn't had any form of new entertainment in the last 20+ years to pick up NEW fans/voters. POP also had the whole "it's a girls line. Yuck!" stigma attached to it.

So either we're picking up more old-school POP fans or attitudes are changing among the 'original haters' (hehe) or a combination of the two.

Nice to see POP do so well! I am a little surprised but happy as I can't wait to see what 4H would do with them. Also a little surprised at the extra head/comic poll though I do think as time goes on the mini comics become less important to some of us when we see how cool it is to have an extra M-A-A head.

The 3rd poll seems to speak pretty well for POP characters. I think it's an excellent result, considering that She-Ra hasn't had any form of new entertainment in the last 20+ years to pick up NEW fans/voters. POP also had the whole "it's a girls line. Yuck!" stigma attached to it.

So either we're picking up more old-school POP fans or attitudes are changing among the 'original haters' (hehe) or a combination of the two.

Took an extra day to sort all of these poll results.
That's because the results are quite interesting!
Let's look at it poll by poll.

First up, we need to know what percentage of customers the votes represent.
Based on information posted, gathered and guestimated, here are the production numbers on the MOTUC line that have been predicted by us and fans on He-Man.org.
These are not to be relied on as accurate! It's only here as some form of reference point.

King Grayskull - 5000
He-Man - 10,000
Beast Man - 7,500
Skeletor - 10,000
Stratos - 7,500
Faker - 7,500 (we estimate 5000 were taking to NYCC to match what was taken to SDCC for King Grayskull)
Mer-Man - 15,000 (this is where Mattel said they had doubled numbers)
Zodac - 15,000
Hordak - 15,000 (Mattel stated that the numbers of Hordak were not hirer than previous figures)

The votes in the poll ranged between approximately 1800 votes to 2300 votes depending on the poll.
If everyone who voted is buying MOTUC figures, the representation of the amount consumed from the totals above depends on how many figures each fan ordered.
If everyone ordered just 1 figure, the average representation in our polls is about 14%
If everyone averaged 3 figures ordered, the average representation in our polls is about 42%
So the polls could potentially represent a respectable percentage of the consumer audience for MOTUC.

Extra heads clearly win out. But a respectable number of voters still preferred mini-comics.
While only a few people at the SDCC convention raised their hands for a vote on mini-comics, the story is quite different when put to a worldwide vote.

Poll #2 - What figure order limits should Mattel put in place?
Now that the line has been active for almost a year, where do fans feel the limit on orders should be?
*** 2097 fans voted in this poll ***
Reduce it to 3 per person for fans across the globe - 643 (30.66%)
Reduce it to 5 per person for fans across the globe - 561 (26.75%)
Leave it at 10 per person for fans across the globe - 351 (16.74%)
Find a way to leave it at 10 per person for international fans so they can gang-order and save on shipping, and reduce it to 3 per person for US fans - 310 (14.78%)
Find a way to leave it at 10 per person for international fans so they can gang-order and save on shipping, and reduce it to 5 per person for US fans - 232 (11.06%)

Results heavily vary in this poll.
One should note that 57.41% voted for the limit to be 5 or less. So an adjustment to 5 would be closer to representing a majority vote.
One should also note that 25.84% voted to find a way to increase the limit for international fans to allow them to save on shipping, but decrease for US based fan orders.

Poll #3 - Which brands are most important to you?
Fans all have their favorite MOTU lines. And some like them all. This gives us an idea of where popularity falls for the brands. This was also a ranking poll. So you could vote for all the brands you like.
*** 2186 fans voted in this poll ***
Original MOTU - 2,072 (94.78%)
Relaunched 2002 - 1,515 (69.30%)
She-Ra: POP - 1,413 (64.64%)
New Adventures of He-Man - 857 (39.20%)

It's safe to say from this poll that a big chunk of all fans who voted want to see ALL brands represented.
Original MOTU is the heavy winner by far. Very few fans do not want to see this brand represented. And since the MOTUC line is based most heavily in the original MOTU look, it looks like the line is to a good start.
But 2002 and She-Ra also came in heavy.
The sculpting style and reuse of parts in MOTUC makes the necessity of individual toolings for figures to achieve a 2002 next to impossible, as already indicated by Mattel. But love for the 2002 line remains heavy.

Poll #4 - What changes should be made if Mattel re-releases He-Man?
Mattel will be releasing He-Man and other figures who have previously sold out. We listed the most popular things people would want to see changed for a re-release of He-Man. This was also a ranking poll. So you could vote for all the elements you would want to see changed.
*** 1884 fans voted in this poll ***
modified packaging to indicate it is a new release - 982 (52.12%)
altering He-Man's wrist articulation so he can hold his sword perpendicular to the ground like in his famous transformation sequence - 812 (43.10%)
reducing red around the eyes - 781 (41.45%)
increasing the flexibility of the plastic in the furry shorts to allow for more posing and seating options - 693 (36.78%)
fix orientation of shoulders so they are not backwards - 671 (35.62%)
find a way to have tighter joints - 641 (34.02%)
no action-posing in the packaging to help prevent breaking - 598 (31.74%)
reducing glossy finish - 569 (30.20%)
reducing the size of He-Man's crotch piece between the ball-joints to match the size of Beast Man's in order to help prevent a bow-legged stance - 556 (29.51%)
lower his eyebrows to be closer to how Faker's were painted - 341 (18.10%)
don't change a thing - 335 (17.78%)

The rankings speak for themselves.
2nd edition packaging is the top preference.
Each option decrease slowly in popularity, so there's no clear divide on where interest drops dramatically on any one item.

Nothing too surprising for me on these polls. I was glad to see so many people voted, though.

The best info to come of this for me is the support of all the lines. Good ol' 200X of course proves it has a big following. Even New Adventures received 40% support. I think MOTUC needs to cover all lines, and this new info reinforces that idea.

I still think that had the question been more accurately phrased to say "More tooling in general" instead of just "extra heads" (which we know isn't the case), the mini-comic option would've been destroyed.

Also somewhat surprised by the He-Man rerelease options, in that so many seem OK with the awful glossy finish of the first release.
And the crotch thing has already been fixed so it doesn't matter that one scored relatively low.

Interesting about the wrist articulation, but I would be really surprised to see that happen.
Although they did do "bonus" wrist articulation on Green Arrow so he could hold character-specific poses.
So it's not completely without precedent from Mattel.

Thanks for posting these results and your explanations as well. I'm surprised mini-comics didn't do that well. I love Emiliano & Val's artwork and it would have been great to see more of it with the Classics line.

Poll #2 - What figure order limits should Mattel put in place?
Now that the line has been active for almost a year, where do fans feel the limit on orders should be?
*** 2097 fans voted in this poll ***
Reduce it to 3 per person for fans across the globe - 643 (30.66%)
Reduce it to 5 per person for fans across the globe - 561 (26.75%)
Leave it at 10 per person for fans across the globe - 351 (16.74%)
Find a way to leave it at 10 per person for international fans so they can gang-order and save on shipping, and reduce it to 3 per person for US fans - 310 (14.78%)
Find a way to leave it at 10 per person for international fans so they can gang-order and save on shipping, and reduce it to 5 per person for US fans - 232 (11.06%)

I don't foresee Mattel making any changes to their policy as a result of this poll. Democracy = one person, one vote, but Mattel isn't a democracy, and if I'm buying one figure and Toy Reseller Joe next to me is buying ten, Mattel earns ten times as much revenue from Joe as from me, so even if more than 50 percent of fans agree with an opinion I might have that the 10-figure limit should be scaled back to a smaller limit, and customers like Joe are of the opinion that it should not be scaled back, then his opinion no doubt counts 10 times more than mine.

Still remembers we paid excessive shipping on Battleground Teela. Is confident Matty will resolve the issue and make it right for us.

Only 102 votes between POP & 2K, this is an incredable swing for POP, with fans who voted almost putting POP on par with 2K. Tallstar, I agree! I also think that there has been, is currently going on and will continue to be a shift in attitudes towards the POP characters in the fan base. The biggest change will come when the MOTU community see the first 4H POP prototype (hopefully at SDCC this year!). Hopefully POP fans will then see there beloved characters finally take there place besides many of their MOTU counterparts in the hearts of many new fans. Bring on POP!

PRO CLASSIC POP TOY DESIGN ELEMENTS BEING USED IN MOTUC TO COMPLEMENT THE FILMATION DESIGNS!!!!

I FULLY SUPPORT THE INCLUSION OF ILLUMINA IN MOTUC!!!!!

IF YOUR SICK OF WAITING FOR A LIGHT TO APPEAR AT THE END OF THE TUNNEL, STRIDE DOWN THERE AND LIGHT THE BLOODY THING YOURSELF!!!!!!!

I still think that had the question been more accurately phrased to say "More tooling in general" instead of just "extra heads" (which we know isn't the case), the mini-comic option would've been destroyed.

Agreed.

Not that I'm anti minicomics mind you, but that gap would be much wider were it worded differently.

The only results that really surprised at were from Poll 4. I would have thought more people would have picked to fix the design flaws (like the shoulders) over something like different packaging, though maybe most people presume these fixes to be forthcoming anyway. But if the character is changed, such as the red paint app. around the eyes then there'd be (I don't think) much need for packaging change.

The only option I was against anyway was additional wrist articulation as it would take away from the figure's look, and could cause some issue with availability, which is what a re-release is really trying to remedy.

I voted for the mini comics, but wanted the heads just as badly. Extra heads has the potential to offer so many options for fans looking for a specific look for a specific figure. I LOVE the MAA and MerMan extra heads. Mini comics would've been VERY interesting, since they would probably do something interesting and new with the storyline. Is it ever going to be possible to have a new "Mini-comics" style regular comic release?

2. Order Limitations.

I wasn't really sure where to go with this one. I voted 10 for everyone across the board, but if they continue that they MUST have supply meet demand. Anyone buying ten just to resell them all on ebay is only taking away product from buyers who didn't get their orders in fast enough on Matty. Why should the ebay sellers get rich? Mattel should continue to gauge and adjust the release numbers accordingly. I'm very against collector pirates. In my city, there are a group of ebay toy collector pirates that have organized teams snatching everything off the shelves when the stores first open, every single day. If you want it, you'll have to pay THEIR prices on ebay. You'll get no chance at buying it in a store in Birmingham, Al. If I didn't work for a living, I could try to outrace them, but alas....

3. Most Voted for Brands.

Original MOTU rocks! All others suck! No, actually they don't. I'm EXTREMELY HAPPY that 200X and POP are so popular, and that they are neck and neck in collector's interests is a huge thing! I wish 200X had chances at new sculpts, but at least there are "influences", right? And, POP's popularity should show Matty and TG that there is definitely a market for cutting edge, up to date POP figure designs! Perhaps with some 200X influence???

4. Changes to He-Man.

Whatever. My fig of He-Man rocks, as is. I would love a variety of heads, though. Maybe one that doesn't look like he just had acid spit in his eyes? Or perhaps one that's not trying to lift a giant boulder, 24/7? A 200X head with appropriate chest strap would be AWESOME!

And so we're not such an split fanbase after all. I guess that after seeing those pictures of Teela, many have changed their minds about giving POP the benefit of the doubt. Too bad the same didn't happen for NA. But confidence may build eventually.

Mattel earns ten times as much revenue from Joe as from me, so even if more than 50 percent of fans agree with an opinion I might have that the 10-figure limit should be scaled back to a smaller limit, and customers like Joe are of the opinion that it should not be scaled back, then his opinion no doubt counts 10 times more than mine.

Problem is that if we're to believe what Mattel has said, people who buy 1-2 figures are the vast majority of MOTUC customers, so those of us buying 1-2 actually ARE the profit base for Mattel, and not the few who buy 10 for reselling purposes.

Besides, if you look at eBay there are bunches of Hordaks that get sold in the $20's range. Not much profit in that game at all.
So I mean, if HORDAK isn't commanding much of an aftermarket premium, I'm not sure who would!

The real solution will be to raise production numbers to better accommodate demand.
But if they raise it too high, they sit on stock, and that starts to jeopardize the line.

To everyone still clamoring for a reduction in the order limit:
Would you be willing to buy up the extra unclaimed figures if production goes too high?

Didn't think so.

Originally Posted by Baena

Agreed.

Not that I'm anti minicomics mind you, but that gap would be much wider were it worded differently.

Yeah don't get me wrong I would love to see new mini-comics, too!

I guess you could say people could've been able to "guess" what it really meant.
But judging from a few posts in this thread, I don't think that's the case.

Well, it looks like the chances of mini-comics appearing now are slim to none. If two-thirds of the fans prefer something else (in this case, another head) then it sends the message to Mattel that perhaps we aren't as keen on mini-comics as we first claimed.

Personally, I think that the mini-comics were such an important part of original MoTU.

Regarding the characters with multiple heads (MerMan, MAA), I would love to know the split of head-usage. How many people will give their MAA a moustache and how many will not???